Mind and Brain Content

Richard Huskey on Brain Flow

Soterios J Johnson — February 20, 2023 - 2:15pm

�鶹��ý assistant professor of communication and cognitive science Richard Huskey explains the flow state, which some describe as being "in the zone." Evidence suggests flow can ward off depression, prevent burnout and make us more resilient.

‘The Backdrop’ Podcast: The Nature of Memory and Early Signs of Alzheimer’s

Soterios J Johnson — June 28, 2023 - 1:07pm

Scientists at �鶹��ý are working to identify early indicators to identify people with pre-clinical Alzheimer’s disease. The hope is that earlier detection — before the brain is significantly damaged — would allow for more successful interventions and better outcomes.

‘The Backdrop’ Podcast Features Scientist on the ‘Flow’ State of Mind and How It Can Affect Well-Being

Soterios J Johnson — February 21, 2023 - 3:00pm

Whether it’s an athlete performing at their best or a musician taking it to another level, flow feels good and is good for our well-being. And the best part — pretty much anyone can at

Brain Awareness Week at �鶹��ý

Andy Fell — March 09, 2017 - 11:36am

March 13-19 is Brain Awareness Week, a worldwide campaign to increase public awareness of the progress and benefits of brain research, sponsored by the Dana Foundation.

Researchers Study How Cochlear Implants Affect Brain Circuits

Andy Fell — June 30, 2016 - 12:25pm

Cochlear implants have been widely used, but not all children respond well to the devices, which bypass most of the ear to connect a microphone to the cochlea in the inner ear. Researchers at the �鶹��ý Center for Mind and Brain, supported by a grant from the National Institutes of Health, are studying how deaf children with cochlear implants use various brain areas to process sound. The goal is to come up with interventions that will help children better adapt to the implants.

�鶹��ý faculty make their predictions for 2016

IET WebDev — December 22, 2015 - 12:00am

We asked some of our �鶹��ý faculty and researchers what they would predict in the new year in their particular fields of research and expertise. Those predictions appear below by topic.

Immigration

Giovanni Peri, professor of economics; chair, Department of Economics

Guitars, brain behind prestigious scholarships for �鶹��ý students

IET WebDev — June 05, 2015 - 10:10am

Belief in the power of guitar music and a quest to understand the mind have motivated two �鶹��ý students who have been awarded prestigious scholarships.

Lauren Salinero of Mountain View, California, will use a $10,000 Donald A. Strauss Scholarship to establish a program to teach Sacramento-area veterans to play the guitar.

Milk protein comparison unveils nutritional gems for developing babies

IET WebDev — March 16, 2015 - 10:15am

Human babies appear to need more of a nutritional boost from breast-milk proteins than do infants of one of their closest primate relatives, suggests a study comparing human milk with the milk of rhesus macaque monkeys.

The research team, led by the University of California, Davis, came to this conclusion after developing a new technique for comparing the proteome — all detectable proteins — of human milk with the proteome of the rhesus macaque monkey.

Newborn Horses Give Clues to Autism

Robyn Frances Huey — February 03, 2015 - 8:00am

Just a few hours after its birth, the long-legged brown foal stands in its stall, appearing on first glance to be sound, sturdy and healthy. But something is very wrong with this newborn horse.

Manipulating memory with light

IET WebDev — October 09, 2014 - 10:30am

Just look into the light: not quite, but researchers at the �鶹��ý Center for Neuroscience and Department of Psychology have used light to erase specific memories in mice, and proved a basic theory of how different parts of the brain work together to retrieve episodic memories. The work was published Oct. 9 in the journal Neuron.